


Heartbeat Song

by Phantoms_Echo



Category: Magic Kaito, 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Complete, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Romance, He made it better later, Little Kaito is a jerk, M/M, Now it's everything, People can hear their soulmates sing, Pretty sure that's everything., Ran is the best friend ever, Shinichi is tone deaf, Tone deaf, Yukiko being Yukiko, Yusaku being Yusaku, he made Shinichi cry, tiny bit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-04
Updated: 2017-05-04
Packaged: 2018-10-28 04:17:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10823580
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phantoms_Echo/pseuds/Phantoms_Echo
Summary: Everyone in the world has a soulmate and odds are in their favor that any given person will find theirs. Any time a person sings, their soulmate will hear them. The closer they are, the louder their voice will sound.That’s all fine and dandy for people who can sing, but what if you can’t?





	Heartbeat Song

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own Detective Conan or Magic Kaito 1412, only the events in this fic.
> 
>  
> 
> Seriously, how has no one done a fic like this yet? It's got so much potential!!!
> 
> By the way, I know that Movie 12: Full Score of Fear has Shinichi with both "perfect pitch" and being "tone deaf". I am telling you now, despite what is canon, that *does not* happen in real life. Tone deaf is being unable to tell the difference between two notes. Perfect pitch is being able to tell when a note is off even by a fraction of a Hertz. 
> 
> *Those two are mutually exclusive.*
> 
> So, for the sake of reality, Shinichi is tone deaf only.

Shinichi was young when he first heard his soulmate. There was a voice –quiet, as if far away, but it was close enough that Shinichi could hear a tune. The cadence was simple, the change in tones basic. If Shinichi had to guess, it was probably a school theme song like they had him sing in music class. However, the song didn't match any he knew in the area.

He went home that night to tell his mom about the strange voice in his ear. He did not expect her to squeal and try to smother him in her arms.

“Kyah~! My little baby is growing up!!!” she rubbed her cheek against his hair as Shinichi tried to escape. “This is a day for the scrapbook! Honey! Grab the camera!”

“What would you take a picture of?” the man asked, eyebrows raised. He didn't seem particularly surprised about the turn of events. Shinichi wondered if he had deduced it. If he had, what kind of clues led to this?

“All of us!” came the enthusiastic reply.

There was no stopping Yukiko when she wanted something, so the family piled in for a candid photo.

Shinichi still didn't have his answer.

“But what does it _mean_?” he whined, wanting to know. If there were clues, hints, _evidence_ , he wouldn't need help, but there wasn't any for this. It was something he’d have to ask.

“It means that you’ve heard your soulmate,” Yusaku answered, messing up his son’s hair with a mischievous ruffle. “How did it sound?”

“Um… it sounded like the song at school, but different?” Shinichi answered cautiously. “It’s not one I’ve heard. And they sounded far away.”

“Well, if you could still hear the tune, they have to be in the country.” His father pulled out a map. Finger finding Beika, a red pen drew a wide circle around the city, encompassing most of Japan. “They would probably be within this circle.”

Shinichi stared at the area in horror. “That’s too big!” he argued, “how will I find them?!”

“Most people wait until the sound gets close enough,” his father replied, “When it's close enough that it sounds like they're sitting beside you, you’re within 50 meters.”

“How do I know it's them?” Shinichi pressed.

“When it's them, you’ll hear the words to the song,” his mother laughed at Shinichi's put upon face, “Otherwise, it's just the notes and tune. When both the words and song line up, _that_ person is your soulmate.”

“... Is that how you found Dad?” Shinichi asked, a little skeptical. His mother blinked, then started laughing so hard she had to use Yusaku as a crutch.

“No,” his father answered, looking a mix of disgruntled and embarrassed, “I took the subway circuit and figured out the direction of the loudest song and worked my way from there.”

“The subway circuit takes an hour,” Shinichi noted.

“And I had voice lessons every afternoon from after school until dinner,” Yukiko smiled, resting her chin on Yusaku’s shoulder, “I didn't realize it, but I gave him a lot of opportunities.”

_Well, it could work._ Shinichi thought. _If my soulmate sings more._

But his soulmate had only sung that once. Throughout the day, there were tiny hums here and there, but none stuck around long enough for Shinichi to track.

Maybe Shinichi should be the one to lead his soulmate? Like his Mom led his Dad?

*          *          *          *          *

Shinichi was _never_ going to sing again! He was _never_ going to meet his soulmate! He was going to marry Ran and live happily ever after!

It had happened in music class. Shinichi normally hated music class and skipped as often as he could get away with. He… wasn't the best singer. He knew that.

But today, he decided he was going to try, for his soulmate who had already sung for him.

“Okay, class!” the teacher smiled down at them from her piano. “Let's start with the Teitan Elementary song!”

Shinichi knew this song by heart. It was the one they started with for the past two years. Ran sang it every day on the way home.

Shinichi could do this!

“And a one! And a two!” the teacher started to play and the students fell in. Shinichi started, but only got a few measure in before a conflicting sound echoed in his ears. It was loud, annoying, and all too familiar.

Shinichi didn't even need words to know what his soulmate was singing.

_La-la-la! I can't hear you! La-la-la-!_

Shinichi tried to keep singing, but the voice carried on, becoming more and more insistent. Without realizing it, Shinichi fell quiet, his eyes dropping to the floor. His stomach didn't feel good.

His soulmate had ignored him.

He didn't hear the rest of the class finish or notice the teacher's worried look.

“Kudo-kun?” the teacher called.

His singing was so bad, his own _soulmate_ had tried to drown him out.

His hands tightened into fists. His teeth hurt with how hard he was clenching them. He felt like he was choking on nothing.

“Kudo-kun, what's wrong?” the teacher asked.

“Shinichi?” Ran prodded at his side.

His soulmate _didn't want him._

Shinichi ran. He ran out of the room, down the hall, out of the school. He ran, hard and fast and reckless. He fell at the playground, scraping his hands and knees, but that was okay. Those were good reasons to cry, to let the tears and snot stream down his face. Good reasons to scream up at the sky until his throat hurt and his head felt lighter than air. Good reasons for the pain he felt deep down inside.

His parents were called to the school and his behavior was explained. Shinichi never had to attend music class after that.

He learned three things that day.

#1 Soulmates were stupid.

#2 Ran wasn't his soulmate.

#3 He was okay with that.

*          *          *          *          *

“Shin-chan,” his mother pouted at him. “Just try again! Please? For me?”

“All they ever do is ignore me!” Shinichi protested, staring aggressively at his book. He tried to ignore the twinge of pain.

“But, Shin-chan! If you practice, then you might get better!” his mother pleaded, “and if you do that, they’ll _have_ to listen!”

Except getting to that point was a lot harder said than done.

“Come on! Just a little?” his mother prodded his cheek.

“Fine!” he snapped his book shut, “but it's your fault if they hate me more!”

The practice started and ended twenty minutes later with Shinichi once again in tears.

“ _Why… can't… I… do it?!_ ” he sobbed, into his mother's shoulder. She held him close, rubbing soothing circles into his back and humming softly. She moved them both to the couch, away from the piano she had been using for practice. It was only a source of her son's anguish now.

“Shinichi,” she said after his sobs had quieted, “I don't think the reason is you. I think the reason might be your ears.”

“My… my ears?” he sniffled and looked up.

She smiled, but it was sad. “Some people have funny ears. They don't hear sound the same way most people do. When I played a note, you always tried to match it, right?”

“Uh-huh,” he hiccupped.

“But you didn't know how, did you?” she ran a soft hand through his hair. “Each note sounded the same?”

“... They’re supposed to be different?” his lip quivered, but he fought against the fresh wave of tears.

“Yes, Shin-chan, they are supposed to be different.” She hugged him close again. Shinichi could feel her chest shudder with breath. A second or two passed before she pulled away, a determined look on her face. “Shinichi, you are tone-deaf. You won't be able to sing, but that doesn't mean you can't find your soulmate!”

He blinked up at her. “How though? How do I find them?”

“Your deduction skills, of course!” she booped his nose. “Just like your father! That’s why you're so good, ne?”

_I’m good because I read and practice_. Shinichi thought, but he figured that it could have been worse. He could have never fallen in love with mystery novels or learned how bits of evidence come together to form the whole picture. He could have been ignorant of all that.

“Honey, I’m home!”

“Welcome back!” Yukiko called back. Yusaku turned the corner and saw Shinichi's reddened face. He opened his mouth to ask, but a swift glare from his wife had him rethinking.

“Were you playing the piano?” he asked instead, shrugging off his coat to hang up.

“Ah! I was!” She looked over to where the piano was, cover on the keys and bench put away neatly. “How did you know?”

Yusaku smiled, “you play so beautifully, it’s like I can hear you wherever I go.”

“Oh, you tramp!” she laughed as red graced her cheeks. Shinichi sat up in her arms.

“Is that true?” he demanded, face fierce, “Can you really hear her?!”

“Um…” Yusaku glanced at his son, trying to determine where this was going. If Yukiko had played the piano and Shinichi had ended up crying (evidenced by red eyes and tear tracks), then she had probably convinced him to try some voice lessons. It was obvious that they had not gone well. No doubt, Shinichi's soulmate, whoever they were, had interrupted and tried to drown the poor boy out again.

Instead of giving up, Shinichi was trying a different way. Yusaku grinned.

“Of course, I can!” he answered, to a squawk of disbelief from his wife. He knelt in front of Shinichi. “However, it’s very faint, almost like a whisper. She plays with her fingers, but sings with her heart. _That_ is where the difference lies.”

“Yusaku!” Yukiko hissed. Yusaku winked at her.

“Mom?” Shinichi twisted around to look up at her. “Can you teach me to play piano?”

The woman looked at her son, wondering what brought this change on. He had never wanted to learn before… then she realized.

“Yusaku, you sly dog,” she grinned before letting Shinichi down. “Of course I can, Shin-chan! Do you want to start now?”

“Yes!” Shinichi ran over to the piano bench. “Right now! Let’s start right now!”

The two adults shared an amused glance. It may not be the answer, but it was all their son had.

*          *          *          *          *

Shinichi had done his research after that first day. There were no recorded cases of soulmates meeting through musical instruments, but there were several theories on it. Both instruments and voice could produce music, no? So, in theory, it would work.

In practice, it was harder.

Some instruments, like a piano, could not easily be moved from place to place, making the likelihood of meeting on the street far less. Yes, he could have gotten an electronic keyboard, but notes from recordings, just like CDs, wouldn't translate over a bond (to the gratitude of those with a popstar and the like as soulmates).

So Shinichi decided early on to switch to a violin instead of piano. It had nothing to do with Sherlock Holmes having played one! … Okay, maybe a little (a lot).

Another roadblock was the emotion behind it. An old proverb said “out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.” Not only was a song translated to their soulmate, but also the emotions behind it. Those emotions are what boosted the ephemeral sounds across time and space. Capturing that same feeling was easier said than done, but Shinichi wouldn't stop until he had accomplished just that.

“You play funny,” Ran said, interrupting his thoughts.

Shinichi paused in the middle of his down stroke, looking up from his fingers to where she sat watching. He scowled, “Just what I want to hear before I play in front of a large crowd.”

“Puh-lease!” she huffed, dropping backwards to take up the whole couch, “you’ve been playing since elementary! That’s 7 years! No one out there is going to bother watching your form when you play like _that!_ You could be a professional!”

“And take time away from my cases?” Shinichi rolled his eyes and set his violin down. Picking up his brick or resin, he carefully coated his bowstrings. “I told you the reason I’m doing this.”

“Yes, soulmate, tone-deaf, _I got it_ ,” Ran grumbled, pouting, “I’m just saying…”

Shinichi paused in the middle of coating the tip of the bow. “What… how do I play weird?”

“Hmm?” Ran looked over. Sharp eyes noted the pink tint to her best friend’s cheeks and the way his shifty eyes wouldn't look straight at her. She smiled.

Even the Great Heisei Holmes could get self-conscious.

“You play while looking at your fingers,” she said, leaning forward to rest her elbows on her knees.

He shot her an unamused look, “ _every_ violinist does that.”

“No,” she shook her head, “the others will switch between their fingers and bow, sometimes music if they have it, sometimes the audience. You never look up from your fingers.”

“I…” the blush across his cheeks darkened. “I just don't want to get a note wrong! That’s all.”

Ran laughed at her friend, “and that’s why I said you play funny. Don't sweat it, I’m the only one who noticed. Sonoko and Hattori-kun don't know.”

“If Hattori knew, he’d make fun of me,” Shinichi grumbled, “not _my_ fault I can't tell if a note if off or not! If that happened on stage-!”

“Don't worry about it!” Ran smacked his knee, the only thing she could reach from her position. Standing, she brushed off her skirt. “There’s only ten minutes before start. Will you be fine in here?”

“Yeah. I’ll just play through the piece a couple more times.” Shinichi waved her off. “Go find your seat.”

“Good luck!” she called over her shoulder as she left. Before the door even closed entirely, Shinichi had started tuning his violin with the self-tuner he bought, readying to play again. She smiled and shook her head.

That man had a one-track mind.

Just as she came to the end of the hall, another teen raced by her, running like his pants were on fire. She wondered if he was another performer. She’d never seen him before.

Ran shrugged. She’d know once the show started.

*          *          *          *          *

Kaito had never heard his soulmate. Ever.

If you asked his mom, she’d say that wasn't true. That, when he was really little, he’d heard his soulmate twice. The first time, he cause such a disturbance in the classroom that she had been called in to handle him. The second time, she witnessed it at home.

She felt sorry for the kid that was on the other end of the treatment.

However, after that, the soulmate fell silent and Kaito never had another outburst -or at least not one like that.  It was like it never happened.

So yeah, Kaito didn't _remember_ ever hearing his soulmate. It wasn't a concern yet. He was seventeen and still in high school. He was allowed some freedom before he got tied down, yeah? It didn't matter to him that his childhood friend had already found her soulmate (Hakuba-bastard) and that he hadn't yet. He was fine with that fact.

Perfectly fine.

“Kaito!” Aoko called up the stairs, “finish up! We need to be there in an hour!”

“An _hour_ she says, like it’ll _take that long_ to ride the _subway,_ ” he grumbled under his breath, attempting to do his tie. He had a knot that worked well for KID, but since he was going with Aoko (and, therefore, Hakuba) he had to switch it up, lest the blonde detective get suspicious of him. It took a little longer than normal, but he finished it easily enough.

Just as he shrugged on his jacket, the music started up. He paused, listening to the quiet lilting of a violin. Years ago, his neighbor had started playing the violin. They were horrible at first, off notes and grinding strings, but practice makes perfect. Now, every time practice started up, Kaito just… wanted to sit and listen, let his worries fall away.

Sadly it wasn't meant to be today.

_“Kaito! Hurry up!”_

“I’m coming, Ahoko!” he yelled back, grabbing his phone and wallet as he walked by.

“BaKaito!” she huffed at the bottom of the stairs, “you take as long as a woman!”

“Wouldn't that say more about _you_ than _me_?” Kaito wondered aloud. He grabbed his keys from the dish by the door and settled to put his shoes on. Aoko did the same while Hakuba, silent stalker that he is, leaned against the front door.

Hakuba looked up from his phone, “Ready to go?”

“ _No~,_ I just put my shoes on because I felt like it,” Kaito rolled his eyes. His words had less bite in them than usual. Must have been the violin music. It was so… relaxing.

“BaKaito!” Aoko grumbled before attaching herself to Hakuba's arm, “you’d think you didn't _want_ to go to a concert!”

“There’s a difference between a concert and a high school talent show. That’s all I’m saying,” Kaito said as he stood and opened the door, “why do we even have to go to this one? It's in Beika, isn't it? That's so far away!”

“A friend of mine offered me tickets,” Hakuba answered. He and Aoko followed Kaito and waited patiently as he locked up. “It’s his first public performance, so I figured I would come and show some support.”

“He’s going to suffer from stage fright and puke in the first two minutes,” Kaito deadpanned.

“Drawing from your own experience, I see.” Hakuba eyed him in that smug way of his.

“Excuse you! I was _five_ and it only got as far as hyperventilating!” Kaito bristled.

“Not helping your case, Kaito,” Aoko snickered. Hakuba gave her an amused, sickeningly-in-love look that made Kaito gag.

“But seriously, my friend is really good,” Hakuba said as they headed to the nearest subway entrance, “I’m surprised that he hasn't done something like this sooner.”

“Why’s that?” Kaito asked, distracted. The violin music had grown quieter as they neared the subway entrance, but picked back up after the ticket counter. It was the same song, over and over again. Maybe it was on the radio? The same station his neighbor listened to? On repeat?

What? It could happen!

“Other than the fact he is _extremely_ talented,” Hakuba guided Aoko to a seat and took the hand rail next to her. Kaito took the ceiling strap in front of her so no one would jostle his friend. “The specific reason that he started playing in the first place should have put him on the stage long before now.”

“Hmmm,” Kaito hummed. He knew that Hakuba was still talking, but the sound of the violin was far too distracting. The low notes seemed to caress his cheek and the high notes tickled his ears. The long strum of a single beat followed by a triplet and progressively more intricate sounds were all Kaito could hear, even over the din of the subway car.

“-aito! Kaito!”

Kaito jerked back to reality as Aoko yanked on his arm. “Wha-?”

“This is our stop!” she yelled over the violin.

But Kaito didn't _want_ to leave while the song was playing! Couldn't they wait just a little…?

The song cut off abruptly as Aoko shoved him out of the car. Hakuba followed, a slightly perturbed look on his face.

“Are you all right, Kuroba?” Hakuba asked, eyeing him cautiously.

“I’m fine! I’m fine.” Kaito waved him off and straightened his tie. “I just didn't want to leave before the song ended.”

Maybe he could call the radio station to know the title? He was sure it was on the internet somewhere.

“Song?” Hakuba asked. He and Aoko shared a look of concern.

“Yeah, the one playing on the subway,” Kaito said, before remembering, “Hakuba! You’re a classical music nut, right?”

Hakuba scowled, “I wouldn't go so far as to say-!”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Kaito hurried him through his tirade. “Do you know the name of that song?”

“ _Which_ song?” Hakuba sighed, but caved to Kaito's insane thought processes.

“The one on the subway!” Kaito reiterated, “Violin solo, really loud, couldn't have missed it!”

“Kaito,” Aoko tugged on his arm, making him stop. They were outside of the school auditorium where the talent show they were going to was being held. The sign in front of the school had said: Teitan High.

“Aoko?” Kaito wondered what he’d done this time for such a stern, worried look.

“There was no song,” she said, voice gentle, “The radio wasn't playing.”

“There-! It had to be!” Kaito felt his chest constrict. “I _heard_ it-!”

A long, slow drawn of the bow, tuning the A chord.

“That!” Kaito snapped, eyes looking around him for… a speaker? A student and violin? A radio system? “You didn't hear that?! It’s tuning the chords to play!”

“Kaito, there’s nothing-!” Aoko cut off when Hakuba laid a hand on her shoulder.

“It has been theorized,” Hakuba started, “that those who cannot sing, can still find their soulmates.”

Kaito stared at him, unable to see where the blonde detective was going with this.

“They only need to find a different 'voice’,” Hakuba finished, giving Kaito a pointed look.

That’s when it hit Kaito. Why the violin seemed to follow him. Why his friend's couldn't hear it. Why it seemed to be getting louder.

Kaito turned and ran.

“Wha- _Kaito_!”

Aoko called after him, but he didn't turn back. The song had started to play again, loud and clear. It called to him like a siren’s song, wavering in its intent.

Without realizing it, Kaito pushed his way through a group of people at the doors. He twisted as easy as a snake and eeled inside, ears perked for more of the song. He took off towards the left, down a hallway that was vacant of students.

Well, almost vacant.

A girl was walking down the hall, clothed in a sparkling red dress, but her hands didn't hold a violin, so Kaito didn't care. Instead, he continued down the hall. He came to the first door, but didn't even pause. The sound was not coming from there. Same with the second and third doors.

Finally, at the last door at the end of the hall, Kaito slowed to a stop, panting from a combination of adrenaline and nerves. He wondered if he should knock, but the violin was already starting into the last few measures of the song Kaito had memorized by heart. Without warning, he threw open the door.

The music cut off with a grind as the person on the other side of the door startled and turned. One hand held a bow; the other supported a violin on his shoulder. Blue eyes stared at him in confusion as pale lips parted to question Kaito's presence. Before they could utter a word, Kaito cut in.

“It’s you!”

Well, not the most eloquent greeting, but at least Kaito wasn't standing there, mouth agape like his soulmate.

“I… I’m sorry?” The other teen asked, voice a smooth timbre that had Kaito's cheeks warming.

“It’s you,” Kaito reiterated, “The violin. It’s you.”

The other teen looked between Kaito and the violin before raising an eyebrow. “No, I’m pretty sure I’m me and the violin is…”

“That’s not what I meant!” Kaito strode in, stopping when the other male flinched back. “I’ve heard that violin play since I was ten. I thought it was my neighbor or the radio, but it followed me here today,” Kaito shot the wide-eyed teen a crooked smile, “or, I should say, I followed it.”

“You heard… you mean… it worked?” The man looked awestruck and completely baffled at the same time. “You're my soulmate?”

Kaito hummed the first few bars of the song that the violin had played for the past few weeks. The other teen’s eyes widened as the sound echoed in his ears.

“I’d sing the words, if there were any,” Kaito promised earnestly, “or a different song? If you want?”

“It’s okay,” the teen shook his head with a small smile, “I’m tone deaf, so the volume of your voice is more than enough for me.”

“Tone deaf?” Kaito frowned, “ _that's_ why you didn't sing?”

The other frowned, turning away to set his violin down on a desk, “you make it sound like no big deal.”

“Because it's not!” Kaito insisted, “I don't care how you-!”

“Right now. You don't care _right now_ ,” the man interrupted, “but when you were little –when _I was little_ –you cared, _a lot_. You… didn't _want_ to hear me.”

The man grew quieter as he spoke, but that just made Kaito's heart beat louder. He… He didn't remember anything like that. He didn't ever remember trying to get a song out of his head. He didn't-!

But he must have and it must have hurt this man deeply.

“I’m sorry,” Kaito said, heart clenching, “I’m sorry I hurt you. I'm sorry I don't remember, but I’m sorrier that you remember me like that. I never should have… done whatever it is I did and I never meant to hurt you.”

The man turned to him, eyes scrutinizing, searching. Kaito hoped he found what he was looking for. He must have because that off-putting frown change to such a warm smile that Kaito thought he’d melt.

“Kudo Shinichi,” the teen, Shinichi, offered a hand.

“Kuroba Kaito,” Kaito replied, grasping those long fingers in his own. A spark traveled up his arm to his heart, making it this against his rib cage. “Do you want to go out for coffee?”

“Just coffee?” Shinichi quirked an eyebrow.

Kaito laughed, “I’d like to get to know you before we jump into anything.”

“Pretty sure that's not how soulmates work,” sapphire eyes glittered with mirth, “but I don't mind at all. Coffee would be great.”

The door behind Kaito flew open. “ _Kudo, you’re on in five!”_

“... After this,” Shinichi scowled, “Coffee is good after this.”

Kaito grinned, “I’ll be waiting at the front entrance, roses in hand.”

Shinichi rolled his eyes and pulled his hand back from Kaito's grasp. Kaito realized, embarrassingly enough, that he hadn't let go after their initial shake. “Yeah, yeah, roses. _Sure_. Go find your seat, you tramp.”

Kaito grinned broadly, catching Shinichi's wrist to drag the other closer. A quick peck on the cheek and he was out the door before the other could protest.

“For good luck!” he called over his shoulder.

The talent show had _definitely_ started by the time Kaito found his seat, but he made it just in time for Shinichi to take the stage.

“Kaito!” Aoko hissed, trying to keep her voice low, “Where _were_ you?”

“Meeting the cast,” Kaito grinned and shushed her as the quartet Shinichi was apparently part of assembled on stage. Kaito knew, now, that the piece wasn't meant to be a solo and he was sure the other instruments did a good job.

Yet, he only had ears for the violin.

As a magician, the roses afterwards were a no-brainer.

**Author's Note:**

> If you want to say "Good job!" or "Make a sequel!", please just leave a Kudo (or Kaito, I'm not picky). I want to improve my skill as a writer, so please only leave comments that are constructive criticism. Thank you.


End file.
